New Delhi: India's
anti-corruption movement and its evolving institutions to combat
graft have attracted the attention of Indonesian MPs here on a
visit.

A four-member delegation from the Indonesian House of
Representatives got curious about Anna Hazare's call for a strong
anti-graft mechanism at an interaction with former Indian
diplomats at the Indian Council for World Affairs (ICWA) at Sapru
House here Wednesday evening. The interaction was chaired by ICWA
director general Sudhir T. Devare.

"Indonesia scores low in corruption index. We do not have a
vigilance commission. Corruption adversely impacts our economic
growth. How do you handle corruption in India?" was the query of
the Indonesian delegation's head Andi Anzhar Chakra Wijaya.

Indonesia stood at 100 out of 183 nations in Corruption Perception
Index (CPI) for 2011 released by Transparency International
earlier this month with a score of 3, where 10 indicates a
corruption-free society. India stood at 95 with a score of 3.1.

In response to his query, former Indian ambassador to Indonesia S.
Bhutani told the delegation that corruption is "a sensitive" issue
in India at present. He suggested Indonesia should evolve its own
mechanism to deal with their problem suitable to its domestic
needs, but what was required was a strong public sentiment against
corruption, free media to mobilise public opinion against
corruption and institutions to combat it.

Another MP, Dr. M. Gamari Sutrisno, said his country had all of
these three pre-requisites, yet corruption has not been weeded
out.

Other members of the delegation, Sonny Waplau and I. Gusti Ketur
Adhiputra, favoured strong economic ties between India and
Indonesia, the second and third largest Asian economies. This view
was favoured by another former Indian ambassador to Indonesia,
Navrekha Sharma, who called for greater investment from Jakarta in
India.

The two nations currently enjoy annual bilateral trade of about
$14 billion that it has in fact tripled in the last decade.

Former foreign secretary Shyam Sharan called for greater strategic
partnership in geopolitics, security and climate change, apart
from protecting the sea lanes of communication in the Indian
Ocean, and cooperation in international fora such as G20, East
Asia Summit, Non Aligned Movement and Asean Plus Defence Ministers
Meet.

Lt. Gen. Andi M. Ghalib, ambassador of Indonesia to India, said
India is a "big brother" to whom his nation looks up to. He called
for India to lead the world at the time of the current economic
crisis.

Devare said the onset of democracy in Indonesia and the
strengthening of its democratic institutions augured well for not
only Indonesians but also to other nations in Asia and around the
world.

The contentious Lokpal bill will be tabled in the Lok Sabha
Thursday and would be taken up for discussion Dec 27, when the
extended three-day sitting of parliament begins, Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) leader

Lavishing
praise on Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee for his "exemplary
public service", Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Wednesday
underlined that the success of the UPA government owed much to his
"trouble-shooting skills" and the "inspiring leadership" of Congress
chief »

Tripura
University will confer an honorary doctorate on Bangladesh Prime
Minister Sheikh Hasina during her maiden visit to this
northeastern Indian state Jan 12, a top official said here
Wednesday.
"Sheikh Hasina and Indian Vice »

The genesis of the problems for
Indian Muslims can be traced back to the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857.
When Mangal Pandey, a Hindu soldier in the sepoy regiment of the
East India Company, attacked his British Lieutenant, it started
the Mutiny »

Picture of the Day

Jamia Vice- Chancellor Najeeb Jung
confer the degree of "Doctor of Letters"( Honoris Causa) on
Prof. Amartya Sen at a special convocation, in New Delhi on
Friday.

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